Reports & Studies
Impacts to the Homecare Industry
Impact of COVID-19 Supply Chain
Disruptions and Increased Costs on
DME Suppliers
In April 2020, AAHomecare surveyed the home medical equipment community on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on their businesses. More than 500 HME suppliers responded with details on how the pandemic is impacting access to products on account of supply chain disruptions and rising prices from manufacturers and distributors. The survey results show a rapidly changing operational and product cost landscape that presents significant challenges for an industry already dealing with unsustainable reimbursement rates from Medicare and other payer segments.
The survey was completed in late April, with results summarized by leading healthcare research firm Dobson DaVanzo & Associates.
DME Cost Study
To determine the real impact Medicare’s competitive bidding program is having on quality of care, reimbursements and overall costs, AAHomecare commissioned a study to be performed by Dobson DaVanzo & Associates, a leading consulting group focused on healthcare economics and policy based in the DC metropolitan area.
One of the key findings shows that Medicare reimbursement rates for home medical equipment cover just 88% of overall costs for companies providing the service.
- Executive Summary
- Analysis of the Cost of Providing Durable Medical Equipment to the Medicare Population: Measuring the Impact of Competitive Bidding (full study)
HME Access Study
In another study conducted by Dobson DaVanzo & Associates, it was discovered that competitive bidding "negatively affected beneficiaries’ access to durable medical equipment (DME) services and supplies, adversely impacted case managers’ ability to coordinate DME for their patients, and placed additional strain on suppliers to deliver quality products without delay.”
More than 1,000 Medicare beneficiaries, managers and HME suppliers were surveyed to complete this study.